The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) has announced the recipients of their Health System Impact (HSI) program, a decision that will support three important research collaborations in Saskatchewan in collaboration with the Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (SHRF).
The Health System Impact program is designed to provide highly qualified PhD trainees and postdoctoral researchers in the fields of health services and policy research with the opportunity to develop embedded research projects that address pressing issues in their communities. This program aims to support emerging leaders, bolster the role of embedded researchers in evidence-informed health system improvement, develop embedded research capacity within health system organizations and support diverse career pathways for such researchers.
The Health System Impact program coordinates fellowship funding provided by CIHR (70%), the host health system organization (30%) and any other involved parties. SHRF is proud to support important health system innovation in our province by funding the 30% health system organization share of this partnership for the 2022-23 cycle. Through this model, SHRF aims to not only support the success and impact of the embedded researchers themselves, but also to empower community and health system hosts in ensuring they are able to attract these individuals to their organizations.
In total, SHRF has contributed $108,000 to this year's Health System Impact fellows, enabling three important projects in Saskatchewan.
Holly McKenzie | University of Saskatchewan | $155,000
Exploring the Wholistic Value Produced Through Investing in the First HIV Prenatal Care Home in Canada, Sanctum 1.5
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Holly McKenzie is a postdoctoral researcher with the University of Saskatchewan's College of Medicine in Pewaseskwan (the Indigenous Wellness Research Group) and is supervised by Ms. Katelyn Roberts (Sanctum Care Group), Dr. Erika Penz (College of Medicine) and Dr. Alana Cattapan (Department of Political Science, Waterloo). Over the course of two years, she will be working with an interdisciplinary team and Sanctum Care Group in Saskatoon to adapt a Social Return on Investment framework and explore the value produced through investing in Sanctum 1.5: Canada's first HIV prenatal care home. Dr. McKenzie will analyze data collected through sharing circles, conversational interviews, cultural/land-based and art-based activities, team members' witnessing and reflections, pre-test and post-test measures of Sanctum 1.5 mothers' and infants' health, and a retrospective chart review. The findings of this analysis will support Sanctum 1.5's Executive Director and Board of Directors to assess the feasibility of scaling-up Sanctum 1.5's model of care. This work will also support the leadership team to present the value of investing in Sanctum 1.5's services to various stakeholders. Sanctum 1.5 will direct how findings will be shared back to the community, which may include research feasts, land-based activities, fact sheets, infographics, media releases, policy briefs and journal articles.
Kirstian Gibson | University of Saskatchewan | $155,000
Building Trust: An Evaluation of a Program to Create Partnerships in Long-Term Care
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Kirstian Gibson is a postdoctoral researcher with the University of Saskatchewan's College of Medicine in the Department of Community Health and Epidemiology under the supervision of Dr. Gary Groot and Ms. Cathy Cole. Over the course of two years, she will be partnering with the Saskatchewan Health Authority's Client and Family Centered Care portfolio to commence a two year evaluation of programs' abilities to foster trust between residents, families, and staff in long-term care environments. Dr. Gibson's project will include a review of previous trust-building programs in long-term care settings, a review of feedback and discussions from a working group of residents, families and staff to inform adjustments to the initial model, and an analysis of data collected from the working group to inform a final model for improving trust. The findings of this project will support the SHA's long-term care leadership team in the use of trust-building models, and aims to increase the quality of life, care and work for residents, families and staff in the long-term care system.
Ivy Myge | University of Saskatchewan | $50,000
Building a Relationship-Centered Practice Model in Long-Term Care
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Ivy Myge is a PhD trainee from the University of Saskatchewan's College of Arts and Science under the supervision of Dr. Paulette Hunter and Ms. Cathy Cole. In a collaboration with the Saskatchewan Health Authority's Client and Family Centered Care portfolio within the Program Support and Development Team and the St. Thomas More College Department of Psychology, Ivy will be engaging in a one-year project aimed to establish a co-designed practice model of building trusting relationships in long-term care environments. Throughout this project, Ivy will seek to observe and interview residents and family caregivers, identify 'hotspots' (situations that may have a significant impact on one's experience), review literature and co-design a new model informed by both the literature and the lived experience of long-term care residents and caregivers. The findings of this project will be prepared as a report using the co-designed model, examples of successful implementation, and supporting resources.
Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (SHRF) is the provincial funding agency that funds, supports and promotes the impact of health research that matters to Saskatchewan. SHRF collaborates with stakeholders to contribute to the growth of a high-performing health system, culture of innovation and the improved health of citizens by strengthening research capacity and competitiveness, increasing the investment in health research in Saskatchewan and aligning research with the needs of our stakeholders.
For more information about on the 2023-24 opportunities with the CIHR Health System Impact program, visit CIHR's website or contact Karen Tilsley, Director of Programs and Partnerships at ktilsley@shrf.ca